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<p><b>London</b> is the <a href="/pages/w/103765182995031">capital</a> and most populous city of <a href="/pages/w/215225401831351">England</a> and the <a href="/pages/w/112483542097587">United Kingdom</a>.</p><p>Standing on the <a href="/pages/w/107685822587432">River Thames</a> in the south east of the island of <a href="/pages/w/109172649100811">Great Britain</a>, London has been a major settlement for two millennia. It was founded by the <a href="/pages/w/112994705379073">Romans</a>, who named it <i><a href="/pages/w/110490425638839">Londinium</a></i>. London's ancient core, the <a href="/pages/w/105861892778596">City of London</a>, largely retains its 1.12sqmi <a href="/pages/w/109562339063423">medieval</a> boundaries. Since at least the 19th century, "London" has also referred to the <a href="/pages/w/106081822755894">metropolis</a> around this core, historically split between <a href="/pages/w/112364922109624">Middlesex</a>, <a href="/pages/w/111958722163648">Essex</a>, <a href="/pages/w/108948902456462">Surrey</a>, <a href="/pages/w/109448569073335">Kent</a>, and <a href="/pages/w/102818906421249">Hertfordshire</a>, which today largely makes up <a href="/pages/w/112173458800074">Greater London</a>, a region governed by the <a href="/pages/w/116803491666757">Mayor of London</a> and the <a href="/pages/w/136324199722307">London Assembly</a>.</p><p>London is a leading <a href="/pages/w/107993325889440">global city</a> in the arts, commerce, education, entertainment, fashion, finance, healthcare, media, professional services, research and development, tourism, and transportation. It is crowned as the world's largest <a href="/pages/w/109170129114928">financial centre</a> and has the <a href="/pages/w/143000072382119">fifth- or sixth-largest metropolitan area GDP in the world</a>. London is a world cultural capital. It is the world's most-visited city as measured by international arrivals and has the <a href="/pages/w/875595279239985">world's largest city airport system</a> measured by passenger traffic. London is the world's leading <a href="/pages/w/112771035403595">investment</a> destination, hosting more <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Retail%23Global_top_ten_retailers" class="wikipedia">international retailers</a> and <a href="/pages/w/299230696899319">ultra high-net-worth individual</a>s than any other city. London's universities form the largest concentration of higher education institutes in Europe. In <a href="/pages/w/105947342770217">2012</a>, London became the first city to have hosted the modern <a href="/pages/w/115775645104556">Summer Olympic Games</a> three times.</p>